Tail structure for door locks



Feb. 28, 1956 F. .1. RUSSELL 2,736,597

TAIL STRUCTURE FOR DOOR LOCKS Filed June 1, 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet l E1FRED J. RUSSELL,

INVENTOR.

HUE'BNER BEEHLE'R, WORREL 8 HERZ/G, By ATTORNEYS.

Feb. 28, 1956 F. J. RUSSELL TAIL. STRUCTURE FOR DOOR LOCKS 2Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed June 1, 1954 FRED J. RUSSELL INVENTOR.

HUEBNER,BEEHLER, WORREL & HERZ/G,

ATTORNEYS.

United States Patent TAIL STRUCTURE FOR DOOR LOC S Fred J. Russell', LosAngeles, Calif.

Application June 1, 1954, Serial No. 433,413

4 Claims- (CL 29,2--337) The invention relates to door locks and hasparticular reference to the. constrtlctionv of a housing or casingwhereby a hollow portion of. the casi g h g r n reciprocating parts is,coupled with an; extension or tail assembly somewhat flexibly joined tothe hollow portion and so arranged that; the combined parts can befitted into a door for cooperation with, the spindle. and actuatingassemblies such as the knobs.

In the design and construction of lock hardware, the trend has been verysteadily toward the production of cylinder locks and tubular lockmechanisms in the interest of making lock mechanisms more compact andsmaller in their over-all size, thereby to improve the ease with whichthe lock structures can be installed in a door. In reducing the size ofthe package, that is to say, in reducing the over-all size ofthestructure containing the working parts, various parts, variousproblems have been encountered among which are those which heretoforehave required rathercareful and accurate machining of relatively smallparts. Because of innovations necessary in the designs tending to makepossible reception of all of the working parts in small housings andcasings, parts of odd sizes have been contrived and the oddness of thesizes has been such as to require a relatively large number of specialcastings ultimately requiring an unnecessarily large number of machineoperations to finish the castings in such fashion that they can beeffectively used. Relatively little attention has been given heretoforeto the design of compact lock mechanisms which can be constructed to avery large extent from stock raw mate-rials formed by a few simple stepsinto the lock mechanism. The result has been that even by use of smallerand more simple mechanisms occupying'less space than heretofore, thedesigns have required so much in the way of extra operations that suchlock mechanisms still are unnecessarily costly. Many, moreover, havebeen so requisite of accurate machining and precise operation as topreclude their being installed in great numbers. With others,installations are often objectionable because of the device being notsatisfactorily operable after installation due largely to a lack ofsuflicient attention to a necessary precision installation on the partof the installing carpenter or mechanic.

It is therefore among the objects of the invention to provide a new andimproved lock structure which is simple in its design, easy to assemble,and which after assembly is sufliciently flexible to permit readyinstalla tion in a door without impairment to its operatingeffectiveness even though installed without the employment of specialskill.

Another object of the invention is to provide a new and improved lockstructure wherein the parts ordinarily comprising the casing are sodesigned that only a small proportion of the lock mechanism need behoused within a hollow container thereby making it possible to keep thehollow container as small as possible and substituting an extension onthe container joined to the container by a somewhat flexible connectionwhereby the container may be mounted in a door in such fashion. as tobeindexed in position through the extension by connection with theoperating assembly, usually constituting a spindle and suitable knobs.

Still another object; of the, invention is to provide a new and improvedlock structure wherein a hollow casing or housing is joined by asomewhat loose flexible connection to a tail structure constructed ofrelatively fiat pieces which can be assembled with the housing or casingby a simple interlocking operation.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a new and improvedlock structure which is particularly inexpensive in that it-can bereadily constrtlcted of stock raw-materials needing no more than simplemachine; operations to enable them to serve as elements in the generalassembly of parts.

Still further among the objects of the invention is toprovide a new andimproved lock structure wherein there is a certain limited flexibilityin joining a hollow casing or housing to a tail structure facilitatingready installation in the field and which at the same time makespossible the construction of the lock mechanism by use of a relativelysmall quantity of material but without impairing the effectiveness ofthe device when assembled and installed.

With these and other objects in view, the invention consists in theconstruction, arrangement and combination of the various parts of thedevice whereby the objects contemplated are attained, as hereinafter setforth, pointed out in the appended claims and illustrated in theaccompanying drawings.

In the drawings:

Figure l is a horizontal view showing the device. installed in a doorwith a portion of the casing broken away to, show the interior parts.

Figure 2 is a horizontal sectional view of the casing and tail pieceportions accompanied by the requisite operating parts with the spindleremoved.

Figure 3 is an elevational view partially in section taken on the line3-3 of Figure 2.

Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view taken on the line 44 of Figure 2.

Figure 5 is an exploded view of the casing and tail structure parts.

In order that the effectiveness of the casing and tail structureportions of the device be understood and 31?- preciated, Figure 1 hasbeen chosen for the purpose of illustrating the relationship of thoseparts with the usual portions of a lock structure when assembled in adoor 10. The door is shown in Figure I mounted so that it assumes aclosed position with respect to a frame 11, jamb 12, and strike plate13. The door is shown provided with a hole 14 extending through .thedoor from one side to the other and a bore 15 extending edgewise throughthe door from an outside edge 16 into communication the hole 14.

There is further shown an outer operating assembly 17 and an inneroperating assembly 18, these assemblies including mounting plates 19 and2 0 and a spindle 21 extending between the operating assemblies. Posts22 and 23 together with screws 24 and 25 enable the operating assembliesto be mounted in proper operating relationship in the hole 14.

The latch mechanism or latch bolt assembly oomprises a substantiallycylindrical housing 27 having an open outer end 28 and an inner end wall29. A latch bolt head 30 has a latch bolt shaft 31 secured thereto. Thelatch bolt shaft is in the form of a flat plate extending inwardly andhaving at its inner end a rectangular open 32- Coop n with th latch bo saf s an actu to pl te 33 i i flat and a in at e earl wi hin th housing27 a transverse platform 34, one end of which extends through theopening 32 and is adapted to hook over the adjacent side of the opening32.

At its innermost end the actuator plate terminates in transverselyextending shoulders 36 against which ends of a cam 37 are adapted to bepressed for withdrawing the latch bolt head 30 inwardly into thehousing. The cam is mounted upon a hub 38 which has a square aperture 39extending therethrough for reception of the spindle 21 which is alsosquare. Further details of this portion of the mechanism are illustratedand described in my copending application Serial No. 437,605, filed June18, 1954.

For normally urging the latch bolt head 30 outwardly to the positionsillustrated in Figures 1, 2 and 3, there is provided a spring 40 bearingat one end upon the platform 34 and at the other end upon an inside face41 of the latch bolt 30.

A separate spring 42 somewhat heavier and supplying a greater tension isbiased between the inside face of the inner end Wall 29 and theoppositely disposed face of the platform 34 confined in proper positionby a springkeeper 43.

In the particular embodiment chosen for the purpose of illustration, thelock mechanism is shown coupled with a dead bolt mechanism featuring adead bolt head 45 joined to a dead bolt shaft 46. The dead bolt shaft,here shown as a flat element, has an inner end terminating in legs 47having raised portions 48 thereon. At its outer end the dead bolt shaft46 has wings 49 which engage in suitable slots in the dead bolt head 45thereby to attach the dead bolt shaft to the dead bolt head.

A dead bolt blocker 50 constructed of flat material has lugs 51 at itsinner end extending through suitable apertures 51 in the inner end wall.The dead bolt may be bifurcated at its outwardly extending end providingarms 52 between which is a springkeeper 53 and a blocker spring 54secured at one end by the keeper 53 and at the other end by a keeper 56,the last keeper being on the inner end of the dead bolt head 45. It willbe noted that the blocker has a raised portion 57 which, in therelationship of parts illustrated in Figure 2, bears against the raisedportion 48 of the dead bolt shaft 46.

The inner end wall, as best seen in Figure 5, is provided with asomewhat diametrically extending slot 60 extending from one side to theother. On one side of the slot 60 are notches 61 communicating with theslot 60, two being shown in the selected form. On the other side arenotches 62 also communicating with the slot 60, the notches 62 beingsomewhat longer than the notches 61.

Two tail plates are provided for engagement in the notches. One tailplate 63 has hooked lugs 64 at one end providing recesses 65. The hookedlugs 64 are designed to be inserted into the slot 61 and then movedsidewise so that the small portions of the hooked lugs 64 are forcedinto the notches 61, the recesses 65 thereby receiving outer ends of thenotches 61 so that there is a hooked-over relationship.

A second tail plate 66 has lugs 67 approximately of the same length asthe length of the notches 62 so as to be readily received therein. Whenthe tail plates are positioned with the respective lugs received in therespective notches provided for them, there will be a substantial spacebetween the tail plates. This space is suflicient to provide room forthe thickness of the actuator plate 33 and also the latch bolt shaft 31and the legs 47 of the dead bolt shaft. Interposition of these partsbetween the tail plates 63 and 66 serves to hold the tail plates spreadapart and in engagement with the notches. The space between the tailplates is also sufiicient to accommodate the cam 37.

Once assembled the tail plates are anchored securely in position by useof rivets 68 and collars 68, as illustrated in Figure 2. Centrallydisposed holes 69 in the tail plate 63 and 70 in the tail plate 66provide a bearing space for rotation of the hub 38. A recess 71 betweenlugs 64 is adapted to receive a section 72 lying between the notches 61of the inner end wall. Similarly a recess 73 is adapted to receive thesection 74 lying between the notches 62.

To complete the assembly there is provided a face plate having anirregular aperture 81 adapted to receive together the latch bolt head 30and dead bolt head 45. The face plate 80 is adapted to overlie a flange83 at the outer end of the housing and is secured to the flange by meansof an anchor plate 84. The anchor plate may be provided with outwardlyturned edges or flanges 85, 85 so as to overlie appropriate edges of theface plate.

In assembling the device it is preferable to afiix the face plate andanchor plate, retaining them by some appropriate screw or bolt extendingthrough holes 86 and 87 before the tail plates are mounted in position.When the entire structure is mounted in the door 10, the plates lastdescribed overlie the outside edge of the door indicated by thereference character 16 and can be secured by suitable screws extendingthrough the holes 86, 87.

When in assembled condition with the tail plates positioned asdescribed, there remains a certain flexibility between the tail platestructure or assembly and the housing 27. The looseness is deliberateand is provided not only by a somewhat general clearance between partsnormally designed to engage each other, but also by reason of the factthat the tail plate structure is attached to the housing merely byhooking over the lugs 64 on the appropriate portion of the inner endwall, it being appreciated that the lugs 67 are merely positioning lugsand are not hooked to the inner end wall. This slight flexibility orjointing of the two parts thus described permits easy insertion of thecasing and tail plate assembly in a door and admits of free and easyoperation of the latch bolt by rotation of the spindle even though thealignment of parts may not be perfect.

Indexing of the actuator assemblies with respect to the casing iseffected by the provision of post holes 88 and 89 respectively in thetail plates 63 and 66 at one end and post recesses 90 and 91 on the samerespective tail plates at the opposite ends.

It will further be appreciated that by confining the hollow portion ofthe device exemplified by the housing 27 to a cylindrical housing nolonger than one necessary to confine the springs and moving parts of thelatch bolt shaft and dead bolt shaft, the structure is considerablysimplified and rendered more inexpensive, especially where the tailplate structure is constructed initially of sheet metal parts or sheetmetal strips initially perfectly flat and merely punched out whereneeded to form interengaging elements and bent if needed so as to supplyelements such as the platform 34 and raised portions 48 and 57. Thesimplified structure thus provided admits of a particularly low initialmaterial cost as well as a low assembly cost, both of which contributematerially to the acceptability of the structure in company with theover-all design which admits of easy and rapid installation in a door.

While I have herein shown and described my invention in what I haveconceived to be the most practical and preferred embodiment, it isrecognized that departures may be made therefrom within the scope of myinvention, which is not to be limited to the details disclosed hereinbut is to be accorded the full scope of the claims so as to embrace anyand all equivalent devices.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patent is:

1. A latch construction comprising a substantially cylindrical casinghaving an inner end wall, an actuator plate adapted for engagement witha latch bolt shaft, said end wall having a slot therein having a widthproviding a sliding fit for said actuator plate and said plate extendingthrough said slot, and a tail member on said housing comprising tailplates mounted in parallel spaced relation on said end wall andextending outwardly therefrom and having said actuator platetherebetween, said end wall having notches on the sides of the slothaving a depth substantially equal to the thickness of the respectivetail plate, one of said tail plates having straight lug means inengagement with the notches on one side, the other of said tail plateshaving a hooked lug means in engagement with notches on the other sideand hooked over the inner face of said end wall, said actuator platecomprising a separator for said tail plates whereby to retain saidplates extended laterally into the respective notches, and meansconnecting outer ends of the tail plates in spaced relation.

2. In a latch construction a latch bolt assembly comprising a housingincluding an inner end wall having a slot therein for reception of alatch bolt actuator plate the combination of a tail member on saidhousing comprising separate tail plate mounted in parallel spacedrelation on said end wall and extending outwardly therefrom and havingan actuator plate receiving space therebetween, said end wall havingengaging means on opposite sides of the slot, one of said tail plateshaving means in a position of engagement with the inner face of said endwall and in a position of relatively loose engagement with the engagingmeans of said end wall permissive of a limited angular movement betweenthe tail plates and the end wall, and means connecting outer ends of thetail plates in spaced relation.

3. In a latch construction including an actuator plate therefor, asubstantially cylindrical housing having an inner end wall, and said endwall having a slot therein adapted to slidably receive said actuatorplate, the combination of a separate tail member comprising tail platesmounted in parallel spaced relation on said end wall and extendingoutwardly therefrom and having said actuator plate therebetween, saidend wall having notches on the sides of the slot, one of said tailplates having straight lug means in engagement with the notched portionof the end wall, the other of said tail plates having hooked lug meansin a position of engagement with the notches of the end wall and hookedover the inner face of said end wall, said lug means and notches havinga clearance where engagement is effected permissive of a limited angularmovement therebetween, and means connecting outer ends of the tailplates in spaced relation.

4. A latch construction comprising a substantially cylindrical casinghaving an inner end wall, said end wall having a slot therein and anactuator plate having a sliding fit with and extending through saidslot, a separate independently constituted tail member on said housingcomprising a pair of tail plates loosely mounted in parallel spacedrelation on said end wall and extending outwardly therefrom and havingsaid actuator plate therebetween, said end wall having a pair of notcheson each side of the slot, one of said tail plates having a pair ofstraight lugs in a position of engagement with one of said pairs ofnotches, the other of said tail plates having a pair of hooked lugs in aposition of engagement with the other of said pairs of notches andhooked over the inner face of said end wall, said tail plates andnotches having a clearance where engagement is effected permissive oflimited angular movement therebetween, said actuator plate being locatedbetween and slidably relative to said tail plates whereby to preventremoval of the tail plates from the respective notches while theactuator plate is in position, and means connecting outer ends of thetail plates in spaced relation.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,447,190 Lickteig Aug. 17, 1948 2,547,256 Cerf Apr. 3, 1951 2,580,196Schlage Dec. 25, 1951 2,642,735 Quigley June 23, 1953

